HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 4.1 Attachment 1 ResolutionResolution PC __-23 Page 1 of 4
RESOLUTION PC __-23
RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE TOWN OF LOS ALTOS
HILLS RECOMMENDING THAT THE CITY COUNCIL ADOPT A GENERAL PLAN
AMENDMENT TO UPDATE THE HOUSING ELEMENT OF THE GENERAL PLAN
FOR THE PERIOD OF 2023-2031 AND AFFIRMATIVELY FURTHER FAIR
HOUSING, AND COMPLY WITH STATE HOUSING ELEMENT LAW
WHEREAS, the California legislature has found that “California has a housing supply and
affordability crisis of historic proportions. The consequences of failing to effectively and
aggressively confront this crisis are hurting millions of Californians, robbing future generations of
the chance to call California home, stifling economic opportunities for workers and businesses,
worsening poverty and homelessness, and undermining the state’s environmental and climate
objectives.” (Gov. Code Section 65589.5.); and
WHEREAS, the legislature has further found that “Among the consequences of those
actions are discrimination against low-income and minority households, lack of housing to support
employment growth, imbalance in jobs and housing, reduced mobility, urban sprawl, excessive
commuting, and air quality deterioration.” (Gov. Code Section 65589.5.); and
WHEREAS, the legislature recently adopted the Housing Crisis Act of 2019 (SB 330)
which states that “In 2018, California ranked 49th out of the 50 states in housing units per capita…
California needs an estimated 180,000 additional homes annually to keep up with population
growth, and the Governor has called for 3.5 million new homes to be built over 7 years”; and
WHEREAS, State Housing Element Law (Government Code Sections 65580 et seq.)
requires that the City Council adopt a Housing Element for the eight-year period 2023-2031 to
accommodate the Town of Los Altos Hills (“Town”) regional housing need allocation (RHNA) of
489 housing units, comprised of 62 extremely-low income units, 63 very-low income units, 72
low-income units, 82 moderate-income units, and 210 above moderate-income units; and
WHEREAS, to comply with State Housing Element Law, the Town has prepared Housing
Element Update 2023-2031 (the Housing Element); and
WHEREAS, as provided in Government Code Section 65350 et. seq., the Housing
Element constitutes a General Plan Amendment and the adoption of which, among other things,
requires a Planning Commission recommendation on approval or denial before City Council
consideration; and
WHEREAS, as provided in Government Code Sections 65352 – 65352.5, the Town
referred the Housing Element to all California Native American tribes on the contact list provided
by the Native American Heritage Commission and to other entities listed and no California Native
American tribe requested consultation; and
WHEREAS, State law requires that the Town take meaningful steps to promote and
affirmatively further fair housing (Gov. Code Section 65583(c)(5)); and
Item 4.1 Attachment 1 Resolution
Resolution PC __-23 Page 2 of 4
WHEREAS, State law requires that the Town make zoning available for all types of
housing, including multifamily housing (Gov. Code Sections 65583.2 and 65583(c)); and
WHEREAS, the Housing Element must be adopted to comply with State law,
accommodate the RHNA, affirmatively further fair housing, and facilitate and encourage a variety
of housing types for all income levels, including multifamily housing (Gov. Code Sections 65583.2
and 65583(c)); and
WHEREAS, under CEQA Guidelines Section 15283, CEQA also does not apply to
regional housing need determinations made by municipalities pursuant to Government Code
section 65584;
WHEREAS, the Housing Element Update is a policy document only, does not implement
any land use projects or issue any entitlements, and does not contain policies that have potential to
result in any direct or indirect physical changes to the environment;
WHEREAS, the preparation, adoption, and implementation of the Housing Element
requires a diligent effort to include all economic segments of the community; and
WHEREAS, the Town conducted extensive community outreach over the last twelve
months including five community workshops, one virtual pop-up event, and two public meetings
before the Planning Commission and the City Council; and
WHEREAS, in accordance with Government Code Section 65585 (b), on October 27,
2022, the Town timely submitted the draft Housing Element to the State Department of Housing
and Community Development (HCD) for its review; and
WHEREAS, in December 2022 Town staff reached out to HCD to obtain initial feedback
on the draft element and, on December 22, 2022, met with HCD staff and received initial
comments; and
WHEREAS, Town staff further revised the draft Housing Element based on such initial
feedback to include additional information and analysis to address those comments, and the revised
Housing Element was sent to HCD for further review and also published for public review on
January 23, 2023; and
WHEREAS, January 25, 2023, the Town received a letter from HCD providing its
findings and comments regarding the draft Housing Element, and the Town further revised the
draft Housing Element to address all such findings and comments; and
WHEREAS, on January 26, 2023 the Town published a revised draft Housing Element
responding to HCD’s findings and requested public comment on the draft; and
WHEREAS, on January 27, 2023 the Planning Commission conducted a duly and properly
noticed public hearing, reviewed the Housing Element and all pertinent maps, documents and
exhibits, including HCD’s findings, the Town’s response to HCD’s findings, the staff report and
Resolution PC __-23 Page 3 of 4
all attachments, and oral and written public comments; and determined the Housing Element to be
consistent with State law and the General Plan of the Town of Los Altos Hills.
NOW, THEREFORE, the Planning Commission of the Town of Los Altos Hills hereby
finds that, based on substantial evidence in the record:
1. The foregoing recitals are true and correct and are incorporated by reference into this
action.
2. Based on the entirety of the record before it, the Planning Commission hereby finds
and determines that the 2023-2031 Los Altos Hills Housing Element Update is exempt
from review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to
Section 15061(b)(3) and 15283 of the CEQA Guidelines and Section 65584 of the
California Government Code. The Housing Element is a policy document which does
not provide entitlements to any specific land use project and does not contain policies
that have potential to result in any direct or indirect physical changes to the
environment. Any individual development projects would further undergo additional
environmental analysis at the time of future entitlements. Thus, it is covered by the
common sense exemption that CEQA applies only to projects which have the potential
for causing a significant effect on the environment, and where it can be seen with
certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant
effect on the environment, the activity is not subject to CEQA. It is also consistent with
the statutory intent and provision that CEQA does not apply to regional housing needs
determinations made by the City pursuant to Government Code section 65584.
3. The Planning Commission has reviewed the draft Housing Element and finds that the
revisions, shown in strike-out/underline formatting are responsive to the edit requested
by HCD in its letter dated January 25, 2023, as shown in Attachment 3 to the
accompanying staff report.
4. As a result of the edits made in response to HCD’s letter, the Housing Element
substantially complies with Housing Element Law, as provided in Government Code
section 65580 et seq. and contains all provisions required by State Housing Element
Law, as shown in the Findings of Substantial Compliance and Completeness Checklist,
provided as Exhibits A and B to this resolution, respectively, incorporated herein by
this reference.
5. The Planning Commission recommends that the City Council of the Town of Los Altos
Hills adopt the Housing Element attached hereto and incorporated herein as Exhibit C.
6. This resolution shall take effect immediately upon adoption.
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The above and foregoing Resolution was passed and adopted by the Planning Commission of the
Town of Los Altos Hills at a special meeting held on the 27th day of January, 2023, by the
following vote:
AYES:
NAYS:
ABSTAIN:
ABSENT:
By: _____________________________
Jim Waschura, Chair
ATTEST:
Sofia Mangalam, Planning Director